Essential English Vocabulary & Grammar List
Posted on May 4, 2025 in English
Essential English Vocabulary & Grammar
Vocabulary by Topic
Senses and Adjectives
- hearing: oír
- sight: vista
- faint: débil
- blinding: deslumbrador
- silent: silencioso
- bright: brillante
- deafening: ensordecedor
- dark: oscuro
- crunchy: crujiente
- smell: olor
- fragrant: fragante
- rough: áspero
- stinky: apestoso
- slim: delgado
- taste: gusto
- hard: duro
- sweet: dulce
- soft: suave
- spicy: picante
- smooth: liso
- touch: tocar
Phrasal Verbs
- join in: participar
- come together: reunirse
- put up: poner
- put on: dar (Note: This translation is unusual for “put on”. Common meanings include ‘wear’, ‘apply’, ‘stage’, ‘gain weight’, ‘deceive’.)
- set off: explotar (also ‘start a journey’, ‘trigger’)
- take off: quitar / despegar (Original “take.. of” was incomplete)
- hand out: repartir
- unpack: desempacar (Original “pack out” is less common)
- dress up: disfrazarse
Language Terms
- common language: lenguaje común
- non-native speakers: hablantes no nativos
- cultural identity: identidad cultural
- writing system: sistema de escritura
- mass media: medios de comunicación
- native speakers: hablantes nativos
- language skills: habilidades lingüísticas
- local dialects: dialectos locales
- strange accents: acentos extraños
- local language: lenguaje local
- second language: segunda lengua
- global language: lenguaje global
More Adjectives
- adventurous: aventurero
- careful: cuidadoso
- basic: básico/básica
- agreeable: agradable
- stinky: apestoso
- dominant: dominante
- countless: innumerables
- insistent: insistente
- practical: práctico/práctica
- active: activo/activa
Legal and Crime Terms
- spend time in prison: pasar tiempo en prisión
- broken the law: quebrantar la ley
- got carried away: me dejé llevar
- went to court: ir a juicio / recurrir a los tribunales
- punished so severely: castigado tan severamente
- treat people fairly: tratar a las personas con justicia
- going to prison: ir a la cárcel
- pay a small fine: pagar una pequeña multa
- do community service: hacer servicio comunitario
- getting away with: salirse con la suya
Connectors
- whereas: en cambio
- in spite of: a pesar de
- while: mientras
- even though: aunque
- despite: a pesar de
Synonyms and Equivalents (Phrasal Verbs)
- introduce: bring in
- challenge, confront: stand up to
- revealed: let on
- discovered: found out
- stop people discovering: cover up
- eliminate: stamp out
- tricked, made to appear guilty: set up
- admitted to, confessed to: owned up to
Abstract Nouns and Qualities
- treat: trata / fairness (fair): justicia
- the same way: de la misma manera (Original “away” was typo)
- rely on: depender / self-reliance: autosuficiencia
- stand by: apoyo (loyalty) (lealtad)
- stand up for what you believe in: luchar (bravery) (brave) (valentía)
- go without: quedar sin (generosity) (generous) (generosidad)
- say what you mean / tell the truth: decir lo que piensas / decir la verdad (honesty) (honest) (honestidad)
Formal and Informal Phrases
- Best wishes: yours faithfully
- understand: accept
- share my feelings: feel the same as me / compartir mis sentimientos
- soon: in the near future
- shocked: appalled
- tell: assure / asegurar
English Grammar
English Verb Tenses
- Present Simple: infinitive (or base form + -s/-es)
- Present Continuous: am/is/are + -ing
- Present Perfect: S + have/has + past participle (3rd column)
- Present Perfect Continuous: S + have/has + been + -ing
- Past Simple: past simple form (2nd column)
- Past Continuous: was/were + -ing
Future Forms
- Will: S + will + infinitive
- Be going to: S + am/is/are + going to + infinitive
Conditional Sentences
- First Conditional: if/unless + Present Simple, will/may/might + infinitive
- Second Conditional: if + Past Simple, would/could + infinitive
- Third Conditional: if + Past Perfect, would have + past participle (3rd column)
